This invention relates to sanitary napkins and more particularly to a sanitary napkin with an elongated absorbent pad and a pair of garment attachment panels. The garment attachment panels control the lateral disposition of the edges of the crotch portion of an undergarment and the deflection or configuration assumed by the side edges of the absorbent pad.
The basic form of sanitary napkins, upon which the present invention is an improvement, are well known. In a typical structure, an absorbent is enclosed between a bodyside liquid-permeable cover and a garment side liquid-impermeable baffle. The cover and baffle may extend beyond the absorbent and be bonded together to form a xe2x80x9cside edgexe2x80x9d or peripheral seal. In use, the sanitary napkin is mounted on the crotch portion of an undergarment such as a panty and, for convenience in description, the working environment of the invention will be assumed to be in a panty as worn by a female. However, the inventive concept may also be applied to infant care, child care, and adult care incontinent garments.
Another form of conventional sanitary napkin, a flat pad with garment attachment panels (wings or flaps), potentially offers some functional improvements and advantages over a plain pad. Typically, the form of this product before use is a flat pad with a pair of opposite garment attachment panels extending laterally outward from an absorbent. The garment attachment panels are often an extension of the conventional cover and baffle between which the absorbent is sandwiched. In use, the absorbent element overlays the crotch portion of the panty in the normal way and the garment attachment panels are folded under to encircle the crotch portion. The garment attachment panels may be secured beneath, to each other, and/or to the panty crotch portion, by suitable adhesive or mechanical fasteners. In use, the relative lateral disposition of the point at which each of the panels are folded (line of fold) is determined substantially by the user, in somewhat random fashion. Between users, or successive applications by a single user, there may be substantial variation in xe2x80x9cfitxe2x80x9d and working configuration with respect to the spacing of the fold in the panel from the edge of the absorbent and with respect to the disposition of the panty elastic relative to the edge of the absorbent (and to the fold). Performance of the napkin may vary accordingly.
The garment attachment panels on flat conventional pads typically are designed to wrap around or fold over the panty elastic and form an upward element that fits into the groin of the wearer. Typically, the garment attachment panels are nonabsorbent or minimally absorbent and so this arrangement places additional nonabsorbent material in the crotch region and, during use, the added material has a tendency to fold over onto the absorbent element. For the comfort and protection of an appropriate fit in the groin, the user is dependent upon appropriate disposition and behavior of the panty elastic.
Van Tilburg (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,589,876 and 4,687,478) and Mattingly (U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,047) disclose variations on and potential improvements over the general form of a flat pad with garment attachment panels referred to above.
The teachings in the two Van Tilburg patents are substantially similar. They show a flat pad with laterally extending panels which fold over the panty elastic (crotch portion edge) but do not encircle the crotch portion. Each panel has two substantially parallel xe2x80x9clines of juncturexe2x80x9d which provide xe2x80x9caxes of flexibilityxe2x80x9d to help determine where the panel foldsxe2x80x94upward in relation to the absorbent edge and downward over the elastic edge of the panty. In use, it is intended that the panty elastic is pulled up into the groin so that the panel, enfolded about it, lies against the laterally outward facing surfaces of the labia majora, forming a dam against lateral flow of fluid. However, the desired configuration is not easily obtained in practice. Because the panty elastic is allowed to go up into the groin, the garment attachment panels must be of sufficient length to cover the panty elastic throughout the length of the labia majora. Making the garment attachment panels long can create a problem in that the end portions of the garment attachment panels (toward the front and back of the pad) which have been folded around the panty crotch are xe2x80x9cfightingxe2x80x9d with the panty elastic which is flaring out and cupping to the body. This can result in discomfort for the user and can cause the panels to come loose from the panty during wear. When the panels come loose the panty elastic will tend to push the panels up onto the absorbent.
The teaching of Mattingly is essentially that described above for a conventional flat pad with garment attachment panels but the disclosure is directed particularly to the xe2x80x9cdrapabilityxe2x80x9d or sufficient flexibility of the panels. The panels may be folded at any lateral point to match the width of the panty crotch portion and avoid wrinkling. The panels may be of sufficient length to encircle the crotch portion and adhere to each other or to the panty. Mattingly recognizes the problem of the tendency of the panty crotch edge xe2x80x9cto enfold onto the body facing surface of the napkinxe2x80x9d but he suggests allowing the folded panel configuration to be determined by panty crotch width rather than providing positive control of the juxtaposition of the panty elastic with the edge of the absorbent element.
The teachings in McCoy (U.S. Pat. No. 4,900,320), Salerno (U.S. Pat. No. 4,940,462) and Seidy (U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,918) depart substantially from the form of conventional flat pads with garment attachment panels described above. In that form and before use, the panels are essentially lateral extensions of the cover and/or baffle surfaces of the pad. But in McCoy, separate panels are affixed beneath the absorbent, each at a point inward from the longitudinal edge of the absorbent. This enables the panels to be folded around the crotch portion of the panty, gathering the crotch portion under the absorbent and removing its edges from proximity with the edges of the absorbent and the possibility of becoming wet or stained. But attachment of the panels inward of the absorbent risks gathering the panty crotch so much that the user feels some discomfort. The thinner the pad and the wider the panty crotch, the more likely this is to occur. If the absorbent is made wider to avoid this problem, users with narrow crotch widths will experience some discomfort.
In Salerno, the garment attachment panels, which may comprise extensions of the cover or baffle portions of the sanitary napkin, are longitudinally expandable. Such panels, folded over a side of the crotch portion of an undergarment, may more readily conform to the contour of the undergarment and xe2x80x9cprovide lateral protection without bunching of the undergarmentxe2x80x9d. But Salerno does not suggest use of the garment attachment panels to control lateral disposition of the undergarment crotch portion edge and, particularly, not of an elasticized edge in relation to an absorbent element in such a way as to prevent the elasticized edge from pulling in on top of the absorbent. Salerno""s design does not particularly limit the disposition of the garment attachment panels when secured. They do not overlap and fasten together to establish a predetermined configuration when in use.
In Seidy, the xe2x80x9cgarment attachment panelsxe2x80x9d are truncated and supported at the opposite lateral edges of the absorbent, extending inwardly and somewhat stiffly in a xe2x80x9cprefolded flexible positionxe2x80x9d. This enables the panty crotch portion to be maneuvered into position under the absorbent and retained by the panels without the need for additional attachment adhesive.
As with Mattingly, the McCoy, Salerno and Seidy patents are primarily concerned with various aspects of treatment of the panty crotch portion in relation to the sanitary napkin. Mattingly teaches the avoidance of wrinkling; McCoy teaches a particular approach to shielding the crotch portion from wetting and staining; Salerno teaches xe2x80x9cside-protection along the entire longitudinal edges of the napkinxe2x80x9d without bunching of the undergarment; and Seidy teaches the provision of panty edge shielding flaps without requiring xe2x80x9cadditional attachment adhesive.xe2x80x9d
None of these references suggest making use of garment attachment panels to enhance directly the performance of the sanitary napkin as a whole.
Accordingly it is a general object of the invention to provide a sanitary napkin with garment attachment panels which perform their intended function of protecting the undergarment crotch portion and anchoring the sanitary napkin to it while permitting the absorbent portion of the napkin to conform to the body of the user.
This object may be achieved in a sanitary napkin which includes an elongated absorbent pad having opposite longitudinal side edges which are deflectable with respect to a central portion of the pad. The pad includes an absorbent contained between a liquid-permeable cover and a liquid-impermeable baffle. The pad includes a control mechanism carried by the pad, adjacent the side edges, for selectively controlling the deflection of the side edges so as to optimize the function of the sanitary napkin.
The control mechanism may comprise at least one garment attachment panel, normally extending generally downward and inward from its attachment at or adjacent to one of the deflectable side edges. In use, the garment attachment panel is anchorable under the crotch portion of an undergarment so as to confine the crotch portion and substantially define its lateral disposition relative to the pad, and particularly to the absorbent portion of the pad.
The garment attachment panel may include a fixed portion attached to the underside of the pad and a free portion extending as a continuation of the fixed portion and diverging from the underside of the pad. In use, the lateral disposition of the fixed portion of the panel with respect to the pad may define an outer lateral limit of disposition for a side edge of the crotch portion of an undergarment.
An anchoring mechanism for securing the garment attachment panels beneath the undergarment crotch portion may provide only a limited range of adjustment so as to facilitate accurate mounting of the sanitary napkin on the undergarment.
Another object of the invention is to provide a sanitary napkin with a mechanism for positively controlling the disposition of the side edges of the crotch portion of an undergarment and particularly an elasticized edge (panty elastic). A more specific object of the invention is to provide a sanitary napkin with a control mechanism for pulling the panty elastic and holding it under the absorbent or at least no higher than closely alongside a lateral edge of the absorbent.
A further object of the invention is to provide a sanitary napkin with garment attachment panels which, in use, exert a pull on the side edges of the pad thus overcoming any tendency for the side edges to fold in over the absorbent.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a sanitary napkin in which the control exercised on the side edges by a pair of garment attachment panels helps to bias the pad convexly upwards, conforming more closely to the body and bringing it closer to the source of menstrual flow.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a sanitary napkin having a control mechanism which prevents the elasticized edge of an undergarment crotch portion from folding up and over the absorbent.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a sanitary napkin in which the absorbent is free to conform to the body. A further specific object is to provide a sanitary napkin which controls panty elastic disposition so that bias of the panty elastic may assist in conforming the absorbent to the body.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the following description and the accompanying drawings.